The Indian Railways have improved its services in the recent times, and the Suresh Prabhu led Railway ministry has made phenomenal changes in the system. However, a family had a rather unsettling experience while travelling Amritsar to Delhi back in 2009. The family were not able to use the train’s washroom for 90 minutes. Dev Kant, a deputy legal advisor in the ministry of law and justice, won the battle against Indian Railways after a seven-year legal battle. In 2009, the family suffered when a huge crowd of people entered the reserved compartment and blocked all the washrooms. Woman Railway Clerk who refused to sing duet with manager issued transfer notice!

Mr Kant was accompanied by his wife and two children when the incident took place, and they were restrained from using the washroom for about 90 minutes. As the Indian railways could not stop this ruckus and people without a reserved ticket could torment people in the compartment the Indian Railways was asked to take responsible for the incident and compensate the family for the ordeal. The family had also complained to the Train Ticket Examiner (TTE) in the train, but the concerned person turned a deaf ear to the incident. WhatsApp helps MBBS Student Vipin Khadse deliver a baby on train.

The Indian railways tried to take timely action and the group were vacated at the Ambala station. However, the state consumer forum held them responsible for the discomfort caused to the family, “All the unauthorised persons who boarded the train in the large number naturally caused discomfort, harassment and mental agony to the passengers who were travelling on the valid ticket to travel in the reserved coach and the railway officials failed to prevent the entry that amounts to the deficiency in the service on the part of the railway,” the forum said in a statement.

The family were finally compensated with Rs 30000 for the incident which left them in an extremely uncomfortable position. The Indian Railways tried to frame the incident as an effort by the family to make money, but the incident is a black mark in the services on Indian railways. While the Suresh Prabhu government have been bringing positive change in the environment, we sure hope that these incidents are put in the past and not repeated.